Taliban adds German broadcaster, DW, to BBC, VOA on ban list

German broadcaster, Deutsche Welle (DW), on Monday, confirmed that the crackdown on foreign media by the Taliban administration in Afghanistan had been extended to it as it has been placed on a ban list.

The broadcaster in a statement, said DW’s Afghan service said some DW programming will no longer be rebroadcast by Afghan partners as programmes in two major Afghan languages, Pashto and Dari will be banned.

“The Afghanistan’s Taliban government is targeting international media with broadcasting bans, as the militant group continues to crack down on civil liberties in the country,” DW Director-General Peter Limbourg said.

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“The Taliban broadcasting crackdown targets DW’s political talk show ‘Aashti’ in Dari and in Pashto on local partner ToloNews. Science programs broadcast on Ariana TV and Shamshad were also affected.

“The increasing restrictions on freedom of the press and freedom of expression in Afghanistan are very worrying.

“The fact that the Taliban are now criminalizing the distribution of DW programs by our media partners is hindering positive developments in Afghanistan,” he added.

Earlier on Sunday, the BBC and Voice of America (VOA), suffered similar fates when the regime placed an immediate ban on their programmes in the country.

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